Morphological features of coronary plaques in WHHLMI rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), an animal model for familial hypercholesterolemia.

ABSTRACT: In order to examine their suitability for studies on coronary atherosclerosis, we evaluated the features of coronary atherosclerotic plaques in myocardial infarction-prone Watanabe heritable hyperlipidemic (WHHLMI) rabbits, a spontaneous animal model for coronary atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction. Coronary segments of the hearts of 187 WHHLMI rabbits (10-29 months old) were sectioned serially and stained histopathologically and immunohistologically. Progression of coronary lesions was prominent in rabbits that had died suddenly. The degree of coronary lesions of females was higher than that of males. Various types of atherosclerotic lesions were observed in the coronary arteries, such as plaques with a large lipid core covered by a thin fibrous cap, fatty streaks, early and advance

SUBMITTER: Yamada S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5411301 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature